Nov. 7, 2006

Complete Release in PDF Format - Additional Information Available in This Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

The Game: Johns Hopkins and and McDaniel meet for the 85th time in the season-finale for both teams. The Blue Jays improved to 4-5 with a 24-10 win over Hampden-Sydney last Saturday, while the Green Terror also improved to 4-5 overall and 2-3 in the Centennial Conference with a 22-19 victory over Muhlenberg.

Seniors Bidding Farewell: Saturday's game is the final home game in the careers of the 21 seniors on the 2006 Johns Hopkins football team. This group has been instrumental in the success the Blue Jays have enjoyed over the last four years and count the following accomplishments: Three Centennial Conference titles, two ECAC Championships, the program's first-ever NCAA Playoff berth and a record of 31-11.

What's at Stake - Part I: In addition to grabbing bragging rights against their rival, the winner of the Johns Hopkins-McDaniel game will also finish with a .500 record both overall and in the Centennial Conference. The winner could also finish in a tie for second place in the league (with an Ursinus loss to Dickinson). The loser of the game will finish with a losing record and in a tie for last place in the league.

What's at Stake: While Johns Hopkins was officially eliminated from contention for the Centennial Conference Championship, the Blue Jays did keep alive their hopes of achieving a .500 record with last week's win against Hampden-Sydney. JHU needs a win against McDaniel to finish with a .500 record or better for the seventh straight season. The last time Johns Hopkins posted a .500 record or better for seven straight seasons was from 1967-1973. Since the formation of the football program at Johns Hopins in 1882 the Blue Jays have never posted a .500 record or better in more than seven consecutive seasons.

About the Coaches: Jim Margraff is now in his 17th season as the head coach at Johns Hopkins and carries a 106-63-3 (.625) record into this week's game against McDaniel. The all-time winningest coach in school history, Margraff has guided the Blue Jays to four Centennial Conference Championships, three ECAC titles and one appearance in the NCAA Playoffs. In addition to his overall totals, he also ranks among the all-time winningest coaches in the history of the Centennial Conference as he sports a 68-42-2 (.616) record in league play.
Tim Keating is in his 14th season as the head coach at McDaniel and his 19th season as a college head coach. Keating boasts a 95-47-3 record at McDaniel and a 121-70-3 overall record. He guided the Green Terror to at least a share of six straight Centennial Conference Championships (1997-2002), five straight NCAA Playoff appearances (1997-2001) and one ECAC Championship (2002).

Series History: Johns Hopkins and McDaniel are meeting for the 85th time in a series that dates to a 16-0 McDaniel win in 1894. Johns Hopkins holds a 44-35-5 advantage in the series and has won five straight against the Green Terror. During the current five-game winning streak against their biggest rival, the Blue Jays have outscored McDaniel 91-38 and have not allowed more than nine points against the Terror in the last four games.
In last season's game the Blue Jays used a stunning 99-yard touchdown drive to seal a 14-5 win in Westminster. Senior wide receiver Anthony Triplin fueled the drive with four receptions for 92 yards on what proved to be the drive that sealed JHU's first-ever outright Centennial Conference title.

Home Sweet Home: Since the beginning of the 1996 season Johns Hopkins is 41-13 (.759) at home and has twice enjoyed 10-game winning streaks at Homewood Field during that time. Currently, the Blue Jays have won 18 of their last 23 and 24 of their last 31 at home.

November Reign: Johns Hopkins enters this week's game against McDaniel having won nine straight games at home in the month of November. During the nine-game winning streak the Blue Jays have outscored the opposition 275-96. The last team to beat the Blue Jays at home in the month of November was then Western Maryland (41-7) in the regular-season finale in 2000.

Streaking: The last four years have been the most successful in the history of the Johns Hopkins football program. Since the start of the 2002 season the Blue Jays sport 40-13 (.755) record. Taking it back further the Blue Jays are 46-16 (.742) since the start of the 2001 season and 51-21 (.708) since the begininng of the 2000 season.

Comeback Kids: The 21-14 win at Randolph-Macon was the latest in a long line of comebacks for the Blue Jays. JHU has nine come-from-behind wins to its credit since the start of the 2004 season. The Blue Jays posted an amazing six come-from-behind wins in 2004 and two more last year. Randolph-Macon's 14-0 lead was the largest overcome by the Blue Jays since JHU came back from a 14-0 deficit to knock off Ursinus, 20-14, on October 30, 2004.

Seven's Heaven: For all the different numbers and statistics that can be applied to the Johns Hopkins football team, there has been one simple way to measure the success of the Blue Jays recently. Since the beginning of the 2003 season the Blue Jays are 31-6 when scoring more than seven points and 0-5 when they have been held to seven points or less.

Keys to Success: Johns Hopkins is an impressive 63-4 (.940) under head coach Jim Margraff when scoring 24 or more points...currently, the Blue Jays have won 50 of their last 52 when scoring 24 or more...at the same time, Hopkins is 77-10-2 (.876) when holding the opposition to 14 points or less since Margraff arrived for the 1990 season...the Blue Jays have won 44 of their last 46 games when holding the opposition to 14 points or less.

Shutouts: Johns Hopkins has posted 14 shutouts in nearly 17 full seasons under head coach Jim Margraff and the two last season mark the fourth time in the Margraff era that JHU has posted two or more shutouts in one year (1992 (2), 1996 (2), 2003 (3), 2005 (2)). The Blue Jays posted 11 shutouts in the 20 seasons prior to Margraff's arrival in 1990.

Triplin Breaks Record For Starts, Consecutive Starts: Senior wide receiver Anthony Triplin recently entered the Johns Hopkins record book in a category that didn't even exist until 1997; games started. . With his 41st consecutive start in the game at Ursinus, Triplin broke Matt Campbell's (2001-04) school records for games started and consecutive starts. Phil Dixon (39 straight starts) and Matt Hagel (31) also have active streaks of 30 or more consecutive starts. Triplin's streak now stands at 42 straight starts.

It's All Academic: Senior DL Brian Nickel returns after earning First Team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District honors last season. The Johns Hopkins football team produced six players who earned Academic All-District honors a year ago, the most of any school in the district for the third consecutive year. In addition, the Blue Jays have earned 19 Academic All-District selections since 2003, the most of any team in the nation at any level over that period.

Star Quality: Johns Hopkins placed a league-high 14 players on the 2005 All-Centennial Football Team. The Blue Jays fashioned a school-record nine first team selections and five second team honoress. The 14 overall selections were one shy of the school record of 15 (set in 2004) and the nine first team picks were three more than JHU had ever accumulated in one season (six in 1991, 1995, 2003).
In addition to the All-Centennial selections, JHU also produced the 2005 Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Year as junior wide receiver Anthony Triplin became the first JHU player to grab the award since the formation of the league in 1983.

Player Notes of Interest (Included in PDF Version)